Shake It Off

As Paul gathered an armful of sticks and was laying them on the fire, a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, bit him on the hand. The people of the island saw it hanging from his hand and said to each other, “A murderer, no doubt! Though he escaped the sea, justice will not permit him to live.” But Paul shook off the snake into the fire and was unharmed. The people waited for him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw that he wasn’t harmed, they changed their minds and decided he was a god.
Acts 28:3-6 NLT

Paul was not a man easily swayed by public opinion. When he believed something, he was a man of strong conviction; just as he believed the Way of Jesus the Nazarene was sacrilege and attempted to eradicate anyone who wouldn't renounce the Way... until he met Jesus on the road to Damascus.

When Paul was faced with the Truth, the presence of Jesus Himself, his beliefs were forever changed. The laws of Moses became living, breathing Words of life and he believed Christ the Messiah with all his heart, mind, soul and strength...

And nothing from that point on changed his mind or his testimony. Not persecution, death threats, beatings, or stoning. Nothing turned him from the Truth.

So here he was, fresh from a shipwreck. One he predicted, and then prophesied that they would all survive in spite of the odds. And they did. He survived all that only to be bitten by a poisonous snake. The island people passed judgment and just knew he was going to die. When he didn't, they passed judgment again that he was a god. Either way, it didn't matter. You see, Christ had spoken that Paul would deliver the Good News and Paul believed His Truth. Unwavering, not moved by public opinion; Paul did what he had done from the start of his ministry. He shook it off. Beat him and leave him for dead? He shook it off. Beaten and wrongfully imprisoned. He shook it off. Shipwrecked and snake-bit; he shook it off.

What has God told you to do? How many have told you there's no way you can do that? How many trials and tribulations have you faced? How many obstacles in your way? Shake it off...

Prayer:

Father,
           Help us to set our faces like a flint and not be deterred from what You have declared over us. Your Word is alive and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, joint and marrow - exposing our innermost thoughts and desires. We are accountable to You, Father. Let us believe Your Word with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and live and walk accordingly. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen